ISAIAH LESSON 24

 
     We will begin this lesson in Isaiah 20:1 "In the year that Tartan
came unto Ashdod (when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him,) and
fought against Ashdod, and took it;"

     Tartan was an office, not a person's name. It means commander in
chief. Sargon seemed to be in power about 722 to 705 B.C. Ashdod was
one of the five most important  cities of the Philistines. Tartan was
commander in chief of the Assyrian army. It seems Sargon sent him to
come against the Philistines. He did and won the battle.

     Isaiah 20:2 "At the same time spake the LORD by Isaiah the son of
Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put
off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and
barefoot."

     This seems like a very strange thing to do, but Isaiah did as God
had told him. This could have meant stripped of his outer garment, as
most suppose. I believe he was actually naked as the Scripture says.
Look, with me, at a Scripture where the word naked in the same sense
was used. Job 1:21 And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and
naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken
away; blessed be the name of the LORD." You can see from this, that
this means totally without clothing. We find this has a great purpose
in the fact that the Jews were looking to earthly sources to save
them.  The LORD probably had Isaiah to do this to remind them that
they came into this world naked, and their only help lay in the LORD.
Sackcloth is a garment of mourning. Man is useless to provide for
himself. God must intervene for them, or they would not be saved.
This is showing they must be stripped of everything they had, before
they would realize who their provider was. Isaiah is in total
obedience to God.

     Isaiah 20:3 "And the LORD said, Like as my servant Isaiah hath
walked naked and barefoot three years [for] a sign and wonder upon
Egypt and upon Ethiopia;"

     Three years are an important length of time throughout the Bible.
We find that Jesus' formal ministry upon the earth lasted 3 and 1/2
years. Even in Daniel, he speaks of time, times, and half a time. I
could go on and mention many others, but I believe you see the
connection with this time. Isaiah and his family had been a sign to
others, even in their names. Notice, God calls Isaiah by a special
name given to just a few of His followers. He used "my" when He called
Isaiah servant. Had he been partially clothed, it would not have made
much impression on the people he was a sign to. This sign was from God
to them as a reminder. Their trust must not be in Egypt, or in
Assyria, or even in Judah, but in the One True God. The three years
showed the captivity would not be a short one.

     Isaiah 20:4 So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians
prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and
barefoot, even with [their] buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.

     In this instance, it is stressing clearly that they carried
nothing with them when they were captured. If they were naked when
they were captured, they did not give them time to return and dress.
No one was spared. They captured young and old, men and women. They
did not give them time to even put their shoes on. This was such an
embarrassment, because they were caught totally off guard. Egypt had
been a proud, powerful nation. Now they are carried away with nothing,
not even clothes on their back.

     Isaiah 20:5 "And they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia
their expectation, and of Egypt their glory."

     They had expected Ethiopia to help them, and Ethiopia could not
even help themselves. Egypt had been a very powerful country. They
were thought to be one of the grandest countries in the area. They had
trusted in someone who looked good on the surface, but lost the war.

     Isaiah 20:6 "And the inhabitant of this isle shall say in that
day, Behold, such [is] our expectation, whither we flee for help to be
delivered from the king of Assyria: and how shall we escape?"

     This is not really an island, but a strip of land which was next
to the sea. There was no place to escape but into the sea, and that
would be certain death.


     We will continue on with this lesson in Isaiah 21:1 "The burden
of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through;
[so] it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land."

     This is thought to be the fall of Babylon, possibly by the Medes
and Persians. The deserts of the sea would be a desert that joins on
one side to the sea. The dust raised from a mighty army does look like
whirlwinds. The word "terrible" is speaking of their strength in war.
Persia is modern day Iran.

     Isaiah 21:2 "A grievous vision is declared unto me; the
treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go
up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to
cease."

     This vision of Isaiah was sad to him. He did not want to give it,
because it was so terrible. He must give the message, because that is
the very thing a prophet does. They warn of things to come. This is,
probably, the army of Cyrus that is spoken of as being treacherous.
Whoever it is, speaks of someone whose nature it is to deal in
treachery. They "spoil the land" {take away the goods of others for
themselves} just because of their greed. Babylon had caused great pain
to the rest of the countries, but now they are under attack and will
not be able to ruin others anymore.

     Isaiah 21:3 "Therefore are my loins filled with pain: pangs have
taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman that travaileth: I was
bowed down at the hearing [of it]; I was dismayed at the seeing [of
it]."

     Comparing this to a woman at childbirth, means this attack will
come suddenly and without warning. The pain will continue until the
entire city is taken. The battle is so fierce and ruthless that Isaiah
can scarcely bare to even bring the message.

     Isaiah 21:4 "My heart panted, fearfulness affrighted me: the
night of my pleasure hath he turned into fear unto me."

     The prophet experiences the feeling of the prophecy he is to
bring. Sometimes the message is in a vision, sometimes it is in a
dream, but the prophet feels the pain with those he prophesies
against.

     Isaiah 21:5 "Prepare the table, watch in the watchtower, eat,
drink: arise, ye princes, [and] anoint the shield."

     Prepare for war, is what this is saying. Watch and be ready, war
is coming. The table being set shows that even though war is coming
and they have set men to watch, they are still having their parties.
Some shields were soaked in oil, or fat, so the opponents weapon would
slip when it touched their sheild.

     Isaiah 21:6 "For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a
watchman, let him declare what he seeth."

     This prophecy is not for immediate happening, because of the
watchman being set. Watchmen watch for things that indicate a war.
Then, they cry out of the impending danger.

     Isaiah 21:7 "And he saw a chariot [with] a couple of horsemen, a
chariot of asses, [and] a chariot of camels; and he hearkened
diligently with much heed:"

     "Couple", in this verse, probably does not mean there will be
only two, but means they will be two horses side by side attached by
harness. Horses, asses, and camels were all used to carry the men in
the battle. This is, possibly, an army coming.

     Isaiah 21:8 "And he cried, A lion: My lord, I stand continually
upon the watchtower in the daytime, and I am set in my ward whole
nights:"

     There was to be a watchman 24 hours a day. The watchman tires of
the long wait and cries out to Jehovah. The lion is a vicious animal.

     Isaiah 21:9 "And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men, [with] a
couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is
fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the
ground."

     The Babylonian idols were not destroyed in the early war, so this
is looking beyond the time to the great fall of Babylon in the book of
Revelation. Many of these prophecies have two fulfillments. That is
the case here. Revelation 14:8 "And there followed another angel,
saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she
made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication."
Read Revelation chapter 16 verse 19, and Revelation chapter 18 verse
2. The only time all of her images are broken, is at the end of the
age.

     Isaiah 21:10 "O my threshing, and the corn of my floor: that
which I have heard of the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, have I
declared unto you."

     God is the One who separates the wheat from the chaff. Isaiah is
expressing the fact that he has warned them exactly as the LORD has
given him instruction.

     Isaiah 21:11  "The burden of Dumah. He calleth to me out of Seir,
Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?"

     Dumah, here, probably is speaking of Edom. Burden means prophecy.
This prophecy is to Edom. Edom, of course, was the land of Esau. Seir
was the possession of Esau's descendents, and the Israelites were
forbidden to go there. "What of the night", was asking when the attack
would come.

     Isaiah 21:12 "The watchman said, The morning cometh, and also the
night: if ye will inquire, inquire ye: return, come."

     Edom is one country God said he would never forgive. They would
not allow God's people passage to the promised land. Their ancestor
Esau, was a flesh man and not a spirit man. He angered God when he
sold his birthright for a bowl of soup. I believe the Scripture above
is speaking of times of prosperity the land had, followed immediately
by war. They could inquire of God, repent and hope God would hear
their prayer. We do not see where they do.

     Isaiah 21:13  "The burden upon Arabia. In the forest in Arabia
shall ye lodge, O ye travelling companies of Dedanim."

     The Dedanites are really of Edom. They hide and run from place to
place. They were travelling tradesmen. This expressly speaks of them
hiding in the forests of Arabia. Arabia is a desert, so this forest
possibly means hiding places.

     Isaiah 21:14 "The inhabitants of the land of Tema brought water
to him that was thirsty, they prevented with their bread him that
fled."

     It appears that whoever Tema is, they are out on this desert and
they provide water to the thirsty traveler. Perhaps, they furnish the
traveler with bread, as well. Since these Dedanites are tradesmen,
they probably trade these people out of water and bread for their
families and animals.

     Isaiah 21:15 "For they fled from the swords, from the drawn
sword, and from the bent bow, and from the grievousness of war."

     It appears from this, that those traders did not fight with the
others, but went right on with their merchandising. They took no part
in the war of their country. They fled to the desert where they could
hide out.

     Isaiah 21:16 "For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Within a year,
according to the years of an hireling, and all the glory of Kedar
shall fail:"

     Now, we see that this prophecy even has a time for it to happen.
It is what we would call an immediate prophecy. These Kedars were,
also, traders in the desert. They were a little more prominently known
than some of the others. It matters not that they were more prominent,
they will fall with all the rest within a year.

     Isaiah 21:17 "And the residue of the number of archers, the
mighty men of the children of Kedar, shall be diminished: for the LORD
God of Israel hath spoken [it]."

     This prophecy was coming through Isaiah, but was spoken by the
LORD God of Israel. The word "diminished" makes me believe they were
not all killed. A large number of them did die, but not all. Residue
means remnant.


























                          Isaiah 24 Questions


1.  What is the word Tartan?
2.  When was Sargon in power?
3.  What was Ashdod?
4.  What did God tell Isaiah to do {In verse 2}?
5.  What does the author believe about this?
6.  Quote Job chapter 1 verse 21.
7.  Why did God have Isaiah to do this?
8.  How long did Isaiah remain naked?
9.  What was his nakedness for?
10. Name two other events in the Bible that lasted about 3 years.
11. What did God call Isaiah that He does not call everyone?
12. Where must they put their trust?
13. How were the prisoners of Assyria led away?
14. What kind of nation had Egypt been in the past?
15. What was Ethiopia called in verse 5?
16. What was Egypt called in verse 5?
17. What is the island in verse 6?
18. What is chapter 21 about?
19. Who overthrew them?
20. What kind of vision did Isaiah call this in verse 2?
21. Why did Isaiah give the prophecy?
22. What is meant by "spoil of the land"?
23. How did Isaiah feel in all of this prophecy?
24. What did he compare the pain to?
25. What is verse 5 saying prepare for?
26. Verse 6 says, set a ___________.
27. What was pulling the chariots in verse 7?
28. What does "couple", in verse 7, mean?
29. What did the chariot of men cry out?
30. When will the Babylonian idols be destroyed?
31. Quote Revelation chapter 14 verse 8.
32. Who separates the wheat from the chaff?
33. Who is Dumah in verse 11?
34. Edom was the land of __________.
35. What is the forest of Arabia?
36. Who were the Dedanites?
37. What does Tema do in the desert?
38. How quickly will the prophecy occur?
39. Why will all this happen?